Recipes, reviews and recreation with the Madhouse Family - two parents, three kids, two dogs, all bilingual !

Wednesday, 26 November 2014

A Crafty Christmas with Bead & Button Co ! (review)

When Bead & Button Co got in touch to see if we'd like to try out some of their crafting supplies, I went to have a look at what they had on offer and decided it would be the perfect opportunity to get back into sewing. Before I started blogging, I used to spend loads of time sewing, doing patchwork and cross-stitch in front of the telly every evening, but now that blogging takes up all my spare time, I've totally stopped. There were several quilt kits in their store but I chose this cheerful snowman one because I always love making homemade and handmade festive decorations that get brought out every year.

The kit contains everything you need, including the filling and backing, except a needle and thread and a pair of scissors. You get plenty of each type of material for the design (it seems to be designed with a little bit left over in case you make a mistake and cut a piece wrong somewhere). You do need some sewing skills, particularly for the four-square design in each corner of the border.

I'm out of practice so mine went a bit skew-whiff but I always think that's part of the charm of hand-sewn items (ahem !).

When doing an appliqué design, it's always the background and border that take the most time. The actual main part of the design is really quick. The instruction sheet has the template for all the different parts of the snowman that you need to cut out but you will need to trace some as they're doublesided. I just used a standard sheet of printer paper though and it worked fine.

There's something very gratifying about finishing something hand-sewn, even if you always notice the bits that didn't come out quite right (and I'm sure you're the only one to see them !). Pierre has already put this festive fella up on his bedroom wall !

We also received some lovely glitter markers and metallic pens that the Madhouse kids have been using for their extra-special colouring and projects. We'll be using them for making our homemade Christmas cards this year because they look really special.

The Snowman Wall-hanging Kit retails at £24.99 but is currently on sale at £19.99. The metallic pens are £5 for 8 and the glitter pens are £8.99 for 8.

Meet the Madhouse Family !

About Me

I'm mum to Sophie (born in 2001), Juliette (born in 2005) and Pierre (born in 2009). We're all French/English bilingual - even our two dogs Didou and Vicky ! If you have any comments or want me to review your products or host a giveaway, you can contact me at cherylpasquier2002@yahoo.fr .

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